Out of all the combat sports events that are going down this weekend, the co-main of UFC 309 between Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira is arguably the best of the bunch.
Whilst the Brazilian superstar was able to get the better of Michael Chandler in their first fight, ‘Iron’ is on a war path to get that loss back; and he knows exactly what he needs to do in order to get his hand raised on Saturday evening.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLCMichael Chandler wants to bring the ‘quitter’ out of Charles Oliveira at UFC 309Speaking to Daniel Cormier via the former double champ’s YouTube channel, ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler was upfront and honest about how he’d underestimated Charles Oliveira when they first fought back at UFC 262.
Chandler explained that heading into that lightweight title fight, he had the attitude of “Ain’t nobody that can hang with me, I’m going to break this dude and he’s going to quit,” before realizing in the second round that he was dealing with a reinvented Charles Oliveira.
“That did not happen, now I have to respect that leading into this fight now,” noted Chandler, before teasing that Oliveira still remains a ‘quitter’ at heart and that his goal is to drag that quitters-mentality back to the surface at UFC 309.
“Previous fights before where he would quit, fake an injury or whatever it was; now, Charles has changed that tune and changed that public perception… But once a quitter, always a quitter – and that little quitter is still inside of him, I think it’s just stuff way down in him.”
Before going on his iconic title run that saw him catapulted back into superstardom, ‘do Bronx’ had garnered a reputation for exiting fights early, mainly from his bouts against Max Holloway, Cub Swanson, and Paul Felder.
“We’ve all got a quitter in us, we’ve all got it,” continued Chandler.
“It’s just got to be brought out and maybe I can do that on Saturday… Maybe I can, maybe I can’t, maybe it’s a knockdown-drag-out war, I don’t know.”
EXPLAINED: Michael Chandler claims he was ‘too young’ when he first fought Oliveira
Michael Chandler aims to book title shot by separating Oliveira from consciousnessMichael Chandler enters UFC 309 as the #7 ranked lightweight contender but knows that a viral finish could secure him a title shot after Arman Tsarukyan faces Islam Makhachev next – rumored to take place in January 2025.
“I think when you’re fighting at the top of the division against the top guys, the belt is always kind of on the line – whether you’re fighting for it or not, you’re either one or two away.
“When I make the statement that I believe that I’m going to make on Saturday night, I’m fighting for the title next… I’m fighting for the title next with a win, that’s the way I see it, but I also get to right a wrong.”
The bigger the finish, the more likely that Chandler gets his title wish – so how does ‘Iron’ see the UFC 309 co-main event playing out?
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“So, I’ve actually envisioned that a couple different times, I don’t know if it’s going to be a right hand, left hook, or what it’s going to be… But Charles Oliveira is going to be separated from consciousness, I believe [that] 100%. It’s going to be fun.”
UFC 309 goes down on Saturday, November 16 live from Madison Square Garden.
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Source : BloodyElbow